Category: Maintenance

Recent Router Hacks Found

Vulnerability Prevention - Grants Pass, OR

In the past couple days there have been press release that show a large number of vulnerabilities in all Cisco Small Business routers and 79 models of the Netgear router line-up. Here are the articles:

https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-rv-routers-stack-vUxHmnNz

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/79-netgear-router-models-risk-full-takeover-due-to-unpatched-bug/

The Cisco models are primarily used in small businesses, but the Netgear models include many that are used by home users – this could present a security risk for anyone who is still working from home. Cisco has released patches for the vulnerabilities and the Netgear vulnerabilities remained unpatched.

If your company is still using a “small business” or home based router, then contact us for assistance in checking for updates or replacing them with an business grade router with automatic updates. We also provide network security auditing for both office and home work environments.

Change is HERE! for Farmhouse Networking

As we work on finishing our 5th year in business, Farmhouse Networking continues to enhance its offering to our clients and improve the way we do business. Each one of these changes is carefully researched and painstakingly implemented to make sure that impact on end-user experience is minimally invasive. Here is a list of the major changes taking place now:

What Changes?

New Customer Documentation: We have been using a new document management system to securely store information about our clients networks, create standard operating procedures on how we specifically care for individual clients, and keep track of passwords for all the things that need securing. This will keep our staff and backup techs apprised of all our customers equipment and standard operating procedures so that things get done right.

New Maintenance Software: After much market research to improve our current system of auto-magically maintaining customers computers, we found something better. It took some negotiations with them but we got the price down to close to the same, so there will be no increase in price. Just better software to serve our customers with. We can now monitor more of the network and in a deeper way so that there is even less possibility of downtime due to computer issues.

New Employee: You read that right. Farmhouse Networking has officially contracted with our first employee. The work load has finally reached the point where occasional help from my family is just not enough. Peter deGreyt will start work on Monday, November 11th, 2019. He has previously worked for another local managed service provider and graduated from Southern Oregon University with a degree in business analytics. His first contact with many of you will likely be to input customer information into our new document management system.

If your company is interested in working with a company that takes IT seriously, then contact us for assistance.

Small Business Information Security: The Fundamentals

NIST is the National Institute of Standards and Technology. It acts as the defacto baseline that all other security and compliance organizations use to construct their standards. Reading their publications is like reading any other government document – extremely long and not interesting. Farmhouse Networking recently became aware of one such document called NISTIR 7621 aka Small Business Information Security: The Fundamentals. We took the time to distill out the main points here:

The Fundamentals aka Best Practices

Identify: Who has access to the network, who has access to the data, and what do they have access to. This includes background checking employees during the hiring process, taking an inventory of data to see who needs access to what, requiring that each user have their own login, and company policy creation.

Protect: Protection starts with separating data into shares then giving access only to those who really need it. It also includes protecting hardware with uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) and protecting software with regular updates. Protecting the network includes setting up a proper firewall, separate wireless for guest access, and VPN only access for remote users. Web filtering, SPAM filtering, file encryption, proper disposal of old equipment, and employee training are also mentioned.

Detect: Having a centrally managed antivirus software on each workstation is a must. This includes the ability to look back in time via log files or monitoring system to find the root of the security breach.

Respond: Have a disaster recovery plan and security incident response plan in place.

Recover: Need full backups of all important business data, invest in cyber insurance, and regularly access your technology to find timely improvements.

If your company does not meet these fundamentals, then contact us for assistance.

Windows 10 Version 1803 Removes HomeGroup

According to the following Microsoft Support Post published in October 2018, the HomeGroup feature has now been removed from Windows 10. Most people won’t need to worry about this, but recently ran across a business that had relied on this feature to run their network. With HomeGroup removed from Windows 10 they were left without the ability to share properly with a new computer on the network. So here is how to fix the issue:

How to fix Windows Networking after HomeGroup Removal

Turn off all sharing:
1. Open Network & Sharing Center
2. Click on Advanced Sharing Settings
3. Turn off network discovery (Private & Public)
4. Turn off file and print sharing (Private & Public)
5. Turn off Public folder sharing (All Networks)
6. Turn off Password Protected Sharing (All Networks)
7. Save Changes
Remove old password:
1. Open Credentials Manager
2. Change to Windows Credentials
3. Remove all $HomeGroup users credentials from networked computers on all computers formerly in HomeGroup
AutoStart Services
1. Open Services
2. Find Function Discovery Provider Host and set to Automatic Startup then Start service
3. Find Function Discovery Resource Publication and set to Automatic Startup then Start service
4. Find SSDP Discovery and set to Automatic Startup then Start service
5. Find UPnP Device Host and set to Automatic Startup then Start service
Add Users
1. Get username and password for all computers on network
2. On each computer on the network, open command prompt
3. For each username, use the command – net user [username] [password] /add
Turn on all sharing:
1. Open Network & Sharing Center
2. Click on Advanced Sharing Settings
3. Turn on network discovery (Private)
4. Turn on file and print sharing (Private)
5. Turn on Public folder sharing (All Networks)
6. Use 128-bit encryption (All Networks)
7. Turn on Password Protected Sharing (All Networks)
8. Save Changes
Recreate Shares (if needed)
1. Right-click on folder and choose Properties
2. Click on Sharing tab
3. Click on Advanced Sharing
4. Check Share This Folder
5. Name the share
6. Click Permissions
7. Click on Add
8. Select username and add Full Control then click OK
9. Repeat for each username
10. Click OK to return to Properties window
11. Click on Security Tab
12. Click on Advanced
13. Click on Add
14. Select username and add Full Permissions (or appropriate level) then click OK
15. Repeat for each username
16. Check Replace Child Permisssions and click OK
17. Click OK on all previous windows

Hope this post helps some other techs save the time in fixing Windows 10 networking when HomeGroup is removed.

If your company is still using HomeGroup or needs any help with advanced networking, then contact us for assistance.

How Much to Budget for IT Spending

As we talked with our clients during our bi-annual meetings, the question again came to mind – How much should a small business budget for IT spend?

Questions to Ask

How will IT change competition in our industry?

In today’s marketplace keeping an edge above the competition can make or break the future of your business. If local customers are looking for a feature or product that you cannot provide they will look online and find it.

What will it take to exceed our customers’ expectations in a digital world?

With a broad landscape of choices available to them, what will make local businesses shine is deep customer engagement. Customer relationship management, targetted automated contact, and the consistently good products and services that technology can help provide to make this possible.

How will IT improve our operations?

Every industry now has specific software to manage the flow of business to provide repeatable and trackable results. The addition of industry-specific hardware takes the guesswork out how things get done right.

Who is accountable for IT?

Are you paying an employee or worse a manager to spend time fixing IT problems? It is always best to hire someone who is better than they are at these kinds of tasks so that they can be freed up to do what you hired them for. There are also limits to everyone’s knowledge in an alternate field, so having a next level IT provider will save headaches and downtime.

Are we comfortable with our level of IT risk?

Risks include cybercrime, downtime, employee theft, and many other possibilities. Having an IT provider with an eye for security can mitigate these risks and help eliminate the others that you never knew existed.

Boiling IT Down

According to the online studies that are out there small to medium businesses should be looking to spend around 4.1% and up to 6.9% for the smallest companies. That number has been growing about 8% year over year for the past few years. However, regardless of amount of spending, if technology investments aren’t made and used wisely, it will be reflected in that company’s returns and productivity.

Farmhouse Networking provides a free network evaluation that includes a full inventory of technology assets and 5-year technology budget.

Celebrating 3 Years of Serving Grants Pass

It is official – the month of September marks three years in business for Farmhouse Networking. We have been truly blessed by God to have been able to serve the Grants Pass and surrounding business communities by providing exceptional IT managed services. We look forward to many more years of giving you the highest level of support possible so that you can focus on getting business done. With this anniversary we plan on rolling out some enhancements to our monthly service offerings:

Enhanced Monthly Maintenance

Standard Maintenance: For those who are not current managed clients, these basics have always been a part of our service offering:

5-year Technology Plan & Budget
Full Network Inventory
Hard Disk Checkups (Bi-Monthly)
Hard Disk Defragmentation (Monthly)
Temporary File Cleaning (Weekly)
Anti-Virus Software (Constant Monitoring)
Operating System Updates (Weekly)
Error Log Monitoring (Constant Monitoring)
Power Settings Management (Constant Monitoring)
Windows Services (Constant Monitoring)

Continued Improvements: Over the past 3 years we have also added the following features to our service at no additional costs:

Ticketing System Portal
Email Support to Create Tickets
Security Incident Response Plan
Vendor Information Tracking
Third-Party Software Updates (Monthly on Firefox, Chrome, Acrobat Reader, ….)
Email Blacklist Checking (Daily)
Warranty Checking (Monthly on All Major Brands)
Operating System Intrusion Detection (Constant Monitoring)
Support for MacOS & Linux (Constant Monitoring)
Server Applications (Constant Monitoring)
Hardware Events (Constant Monitoring)

Enhancements to Come: In September, we will be adding these new exciting features to our service:

DNS filtering – this will further protect your network from external threats by stopping accidental surfing to malicious sites. It also can increase productivity and network speeds by limiting wasteful frivolous surfing during company time.
Dark Web Scan – Each monthly client will have the “Dark Web” scanned to see if any email addresses connected to the company have been involved in a previous password breach.
Weekly Security Newsletter – Farmhouse Networking is partnering with a national security non-profit to deliver up-to-date news and information about how to stay safe online. These weekly newsletters will be packed with valuable information and delivered to everyone in your organization.

As our service offering has expanded, we have deepened our ability to monitor our customers networks to proactively respond to alerts before they become problems. We have continued to add levels of protection to make sure that our clients systems are safe from the ever-expanding list of threats. All this has been done at no additional cost, despite inflation, up to this point. To continue offering this high level of service, Farmhouse Networking is making a couple small changes to its prices that will be effective September 1^st, 2018.

Monthly Maintenance Clients – our services are based on a per device basis and the cost per workstation will be $25 per month for remote maintenance and $50 per month for full service maintenance. All other prices will remain the same for every other device on the network. This will only effect clients whose contracts are renewing after September 1^st, 2018 – any renewed before that will keep their prices the same for the next 12-month term.
Small Business Clients – those who do not have a server and have less than 5 workstations, our hourly rate will be $80 per hour for on-site service and $40 per hour for remote service (billed in 15-minute increments). That is only $10 more for on-site support and $5 more for remote support.
Standard to Medium Clients – those with a server or more than 5 workstations, our hourly rate will be $120 per hour for on-site service and $60 per hour for remote service (billed in 15-minute increments). That is only $10 more for on-site support and $5 more for remote support.
Tier-3 Clients – those technology companies that utilize our advanced expertise to better serve their clients, our hourly rate will be $40 per hour for remote service (billed in 15-minute increments). That is only $5 more for remote support.
Charity Clients – those non-profits that pay for support, our hourly rate will remain at $70 per hour for on-site service and $35 per hour for remote service (billed in 15-minute increments).

For all our monthly maintenance clients, we will be calling to schedule our semi-annual meeting to check-in with you during the month of September. At that time we will be performing another network inventory to insure that all network assets are covered properly under your current contract. We cannot thank all our clients enough for your continued use of our IT services. We look forward to continuing to serve you.

Know the state of your flocks,
and put your heart into caring for your herds,
for riches don’t last forever,
and the crown might not be passed to the next generation.
After the hay is harvested and the new crop appears
and the mountain grasses are gathered in,
your sheep will provide wool for clothing,
and your goats will provide the price of a field.
And you will have enough goats’ milk for yourself,
your family, and your servant girls.
Proverbs 27:23-27

Are You in Need of Technical Help?

We have a bench of Tier 3 engineers ready that have been trained in industry best practices, compliance and are comfortable supporting your network and computers.

Put an End to Stressful Computer Support

By utilizing one of our industry trained Helpdesk Specialists, you can free your employees from wasting time on computer support tasks.

Our Helpdesk Specialists are capable – but not limited to – the following tasks:

Desktop operating system maintenance, troubleshooting, and diagnosis
Desktop connectivity troubleshooting
Network systems maintenance, troubleshooting, and diagnosis
Network connectivity troubleshooting
Server operating system maintenance, troubleshooting, and diagnosis
Server connectivity troubleshooting
Application installation and support
Client VPN installation and support
Microsoft Office Suite & Google G-Suite support
Security & access management
Anti-malware administration and resolution

Learn more about the benefits of our Dedicated Remote Support Solutions here.

The Latest Technology, No Upfront Costs

Technology As A Service (TaaS)

Access to the latest technology your way.

FLEXIBLE, SIMPLE AND COST EFFECTIVE.

Technology as a Service [TaaS] enables organizations to procure the latest hardware, software, and services, without the expense of a large, upfront purchase. With TaaS, it’s easy to configure and deploy an all-inclusive solution to meet all of your needs, for a single monthly payment.

Orders can be fulfilled from a wide variety of new or refurbished equipment, and can include cloud software, services, and tech support – all in one monthly invoice.

Realize lower total cost of ownership [TCO] with payments spread out over time, while still enjoying the latest technology to meet the business needs of today.

Once a contract is up, the equipment can be returned or purchased at a reduced rate. Or, you can simply extend the contract – in some cases, month-to-month.

WHY TAAS?

Simple–Experts help to make product selections.
Variety–Choose from a wide range of hardware, software and services
Flexible–Ability to choose short-term rentals provides maximum flexibility

BENEFITS:

Upgrade to newer, faster equipment at the end of the contract
Easier to budget expenses more effectively with a recurring monthly invoice
No up-front capital expenditures means lower TCO over time
More flexible financing options so you can tailor your payments
Easier to implement hardware initiatives as needed without waiting for funding
Reduce the risks associated with owning the technology

If your company is looking to upgrade to the latest technology or just doing a hardware refresh, then contact us for assistance.

Now Featuring: third-party software updates

In a continuing effort to offer the best remote monitoring & maintenance available and to enhance the security of our clients even more, we are now offering updates to several of the most popular third-party software packages. This is in addition to the Windows patching, system health checks, system maintenance, managed antivirus (included for free), and website blacklist monitoring that now come standard with our remote monitoring & maintenance service. Here is a summation:

Third-Party Software Updates

Google Chrome: web browser made by Google.

Firefox: web browser made by the Mozilla Foundation.

CCleaner: system cleaning utility (now owned by AVG).

Adobe Acrobat Reader: PDF viewer made by Adobe.

Adobe Flash Player: website animation plugin made by Adobe.

Java Runtime: website programming plugin made by Oracle.

There is a long list of other software that we can update for you automatically, but have chosen these in particular to update as they are the most likely to be exploited and least likely to be updated regularly.

If your company has software that needs to be automatically updated or would like to sign-up for remote monitoring and maintenance, then contact us for assistance.

DNS Filtering for Security & Productivity

Any Human Resources department manager will attest to the need for an Acceptable Use Policy as part of the Employee Handbook. It should clearly state the proper use of business-owned workstations and what traffic is allowed on the company network. Monitoring this policy is next to impossible for small businesses, yet ignoring it leads to infections, security breaches, and huge losses to the bottom line by wasted employee productivity. How does a company stay safe from the big, bad Internet?

Policy Creation

This may sound boring, but before any monitoring and enforcement can take place legally, there must be a clearly defined policy in place with consequences for violations. This policy must be signed by each employee. Only when signed policies are in each employee’s file, can measures can be taken to monitor and enforce the new written policy.

No Administrator Access

There is no reason for the average employee to need Administrator access to a workstation once it is setup properly for business use. Most employees do not need to install any software or make any major setting changes without first consulting management and/or network support personnel. Software and operating system updates should also be handled by network support personnel or by an automated process. Installation of additional hardware should be cleared with management and implemented by network support personnel. Workstations are a company-owned tool to be used by the employee only for the best interests of the company, not for personal file storage or entertainment purposes.

DNS Filtering

The Internet is an invaluable tool for business purposes. There are, however, many threats out there, and the common user has no idea how to avoid them. There are also innumerable distractions ranging from time wasters to those that are downright illegal. DNS Filtering inspects every internet request against a database of known sites and blocks bad traffic before it goes anywhere on the internet. This keeps your internal network assets safe from malicious sites and content that is inappropriate for business or bad for productivity. This is accomplished without interrupting or slowing down the normal flow of good traffic around the Internet.

If your company is looking to add layers of security to your network or increase productivity by limiting Internet time wasters, then contact us for assistance.

Category: Maintenance

Recent Router Hacks Found

Change is HERE! for Farmhouse Networking

What Changes?

Small Business Information Security: The Fundamentals

The Fundamentals aka Best Practices

Windows 10 Version 1803 Removes HomeGroup

How to fix Windows Networking after HomeGroup Removal

How Much to Budget for IT Spending

Questions to Ask

Boiling IT Down

Celebrating 3 Years of Serving Grants Pass

Enhanced Monthly Maintenance

Are You in Need of Technical Help?

Put an End to Stressful Computer Support

The Latest Technology, No Upfront Costs

Technology As A Service (TaaS)

Access to the latest technology your way.

Now Featuring: third-party software updates

Third-Party Software Updates

DNS Filtering for Security & Productivity

Policy Creation

No Administrator Access

DNS Filtering

Recent Posts

Archives

Categories

Category: Maintenance

What Changes?

The Fundamentals aka Best Practices

How to fix Windows Networking after HomeGroup Removal

Questions to Ask

Boiling IT Down

Enhanced Monthly Maintenance

Put an End to Stressful Computer Support

Technology As A Service (TaaS)

Access to the latest technology your way.

Third-Party Software Updates

Policy Creation

No Administrator Access

DNS Filtering

Recent Posts

Archives

Categories

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